Past Nightmares
by Chaotic Revelation
Summary: After being given a drug during a mission Artemis has slipped into a deep slumber full of nightmares. Batman has ordered the team to enter her mind and help her wake up, but is the team ready to face Artemis's nightmares of her past? Set after Usual Suspects (season one) before Auld Aquaintances. Image Credit: mirakelsey on deviantART
1. Chapter 1

_Hello! Okay, so I have been out of the writing game for quite some time now. Also I have never written a Young Justice fiction, so please bear with me. I have had this idea for quite a while so I thought, what the hell, and posted it! I would LOVE to hear what you think of this, and this chapter is going to be short because I just kind of want to see what people think of the whole idea and what not. So thank you for taking time to check this out!_

_This chapter is pretty short, but future chapter should be longer. I just wanted to see what ya'll thought!_

**_Disclaimer: I do not own Young Justice._**

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001: The Nightmare Begins

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_Shit_, Artemis cursed to herself as she shot arrows behind Superboy who was just about to be attacked. _And this was supposed to be a simple reconnaissance mission._

She looked around to see more and more soldiers coming to attack her and her teammates, her friends.

_Where the hell do they keep coming from?_ She growled inwardly, becoming more aware of her dwindling quiver.

She continued to fire arrows to help keep as many soldiers away from her friends as possible while she also was looking for the mastermind, Lex Luthor. She knew he was here, waiting, watching, and they needed to end this, fast. It was easy to tell that everyone on the team was becoming tired from the long battle. She glanced around once more when she spotted him standing in the corner, arms folded across his chest, and a smile gracing his face.

_Cocky bastard_, she scoffed in her mind as she took the opportunity to cross the room to try and take him down. She ran past Robin who saw where she was headed and decided to be her backup. Just as Artemis let an arrow fly towards Luthor's heart his cybernetic bodyguard, Mercy Graves, grabbed the arrow and broke it in two.

"I'll take the bodyguard, you get Luthor!" Robin shouted as he ran pass Artemis and started fighting Mercy.

Artemis took the first opening she could find and bolted pass Robin and Mercy to get to Luthor. She aimed a kick towards his head, but Luthor easily blocked it. She continued to throw punches and kicks, but Luthor was blocking her efforts with much ease, a smile still graced his face. This caused Artemis to become angry at the man who was mocking her as she threw a right punch towards him, but he grabbed her fist and twisted it behind her and pulled her close to him, a knife held to her throat.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk, and here I would have thought Sportsmaster would have taught you better than to lose your temper, and get sloppy. However, he tends to lose his temper easily as well. Like father, like daughter," Luthor taunted.

Artemis growled at the man holding the knife at her throat and made an attempt to get free only to feel a sharp pain at her throat.

"Oh I wouldn't do that if I were you, you might actually end up killing yourself in the process," Luthor smirked at the blood that now dripped from her neck.

"Artemis!" Kid Flash shouted as he saw his teammate being held.

"Let her go!"Superboy growled.

The fighting had stopped, no more soldiers remained, and Mercy was able to fight off the boy wonder and take her spot back at Luthor's side. The team stood there watching, eyes frantic, trying to figure out how to save their friend from Luthor's hold.

Luthor began to laugh, "Oh don't worry, I will. I don't want her dead, well not just yet at least." He stopped laughing as Mercy pulled out a syringe filled with black liquid.

Artemis's eyes looked to her right, where Mercy held the syringe, panic crept into her voice, "What is that?"

With a sly smile on his face Luthor explained, "It's a new drug I want to test out, and who could be better than a member of the Junior Justice League."

"What does it do?" Robin asked, his voice low and level.

Luthor looked towards the boy wonder, "Well that's what we are going to find out, however, if it does what it's supposed to, and then our lovely Artemis here will fall into a deep sleep a face her past nightmares for the rest of her life."

Artemis's eyes widened as she began to struggle against Luthor's death grip, but to no avail. Mercy stabbed the needle into Artemis's arm and the black liquid began to course through her veins. Artemis let out a slight gasp as she felt the black liquid start to work. Her eyes began to feel heavy, and she felt as though she couldn't stand any longer.

Luthor smiled as the girl in his arms started lose consciousness and threw her towards her friends as Mercy set off a smoke bomb. "Until next time," he called as the smoke engulfed the room.

As soon as Luthor pushed Artemis forwards Kid Flash ran towards her to catch her falling body. The smoke cleared and Luthor and Graves were nowhere to be seen.

"Damn it," Robin cursed under his breath, but then turned his attention to the girl lying on the floor whose weight was being supported by Kid Flash.

"Artemis! Stay awake, don't fall asleep!" Kid Flash called to her, panic rising in his chest, as her eyes began to close.

Her eyes shot open when she heard his voice, but only for a second as they started to droop again. And this time she couldn't fight the sleep that was creeping up on her. She succumbed to inevitable darkness that began to surround her.

"Artemis, no!" M'gann called as she dropped to her knees by her best friend.

"We have to get her back to the cave now! Batman might be able to find a cure if we get here there soon enough," Kaldur stated.

They all nodded, Miss Martian called the bioship, and Wally picked her up bridal style and carried her onto the ship. He laid her down on the bed M'gann created, and watched her motionless body. The ride back to the cave was quiet, everyone wrapped in their own thoughts, everyone blaming themselves for what happened, until they heard an earth shattering scream. As soon as Artemis let out a scream everyone was broken from their thoughts. Wally looked down at the girl, he was horrified.

Robin ran to her side, and shook her slightly while calling her name, trying to wake her up.

"It's not going to work, Robin," Kaldur stated, his voice stoic.

"What's wrong with her, why is she screaming?" panic crept into Conner's voice.

Kaldur looked down at the girl whose screaming had ceased, but watched as she began to break out in a sweat, "Nightmares."


	2. Chapter 2

_Wow! I didn't expect so many people to like this story! You guys are so awesome and I really appreciate the support! I planned on updating earlier, but then I ended up moving…so yeah. The next update will probably take just as long because I have to unpack and what not, but next chapter is when the good stuff happens._

_Feel free to let me know if you have anything particular you want to see about Artemis's past. I feel as though Artemis had a hellish childhood and plan on showing that. It won't be too graphic, but there will be child abuse in the rest of the chapters so prepare yourselves. If I feel like I go into too much detail I will be upping the rating to M. Anyway enjoy!_

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002: The Mission

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"How much longer?" Wally groaned in frustration, his eyes never leaving the unconscious girl lying on the makeshift bed.

"Only about another couple minutes, be patient Wally," Kaldur sighed, his attention also on the sleeping blonde.

Wally just let out another frustrated huff as he tapped his foot at super speed. "I should have just ran her back to the cave," he grumbled under his breath.

"Wally, shut up, you aren't the only one worried," Dick spat towards the young speedster, causing Wally to roll his eyes in annoyance.

"Arriving at the cave now," Megan announced.

As soon as the bioship landed in the cave Wally rushed Artemis to the medical wing. He laid her down as gently as possible on one of the beds. His eyes didn't leave her face as he grasped her hand in his. Her sweating had ceased, and she had yet to scream again, but her brow was furrowed and her lips her pursed. She looked to be in pain causing Wally to clench his teeth in anger.

_I should have stopped her_, he thought. _I should have tried to get her away from Luthor sooner, but I was frozen when I saw that syringe. This is all my fault, I'm so sorry Artemis._

His train of thought was broken by the deep voice of Batman, "Explain the situation."

"During our fight with Lex Luthor, Artemis was captured. With her in his grasp he proceeded to inject her with a black substance. He explained that if this new drug works, it will force her to succumb to a deep slumber and have constant nightmares," Kaldur explained as he walked into the room with the rest of the team on his heels.

The team's attention was snapped back to Artemis when she let out another scream. She squeezed Wally's hand in the process. Wally watched, knowing there was nothing in his power he could do to help ease the young archer's pain. As she finished screaming her breath was labored, and her face began to relax slightly.

"We have already begun to research things that could cause this…reaction," Batman stated, his eyes trained on the girl in the bed.

The Flash walked over and grabbed Artemis's free arm and began to clean a spot to take blood.

"What are you doing?" Wally snapped at his mentor as he saw Flash bring a needle to Artemis's arm.

"We have to figure out what they gave her Wally," The Flash answered as he began to draw Artemis's blood.

Wally looked back down at the girl, "Oh, of course, right."

"You all have had a rough day, why don't you all go home, and–" Black Canary began but was cut off.

"No!" The entire team shouted as they surround the blonde girl, who was trapped in an endless nightmare.

Batman looked at the determined teens standing in front of him and nodded, "Fine, we are going to take her blood work to the lab and begin analyzing it. You many stay here and monitor her."

The team nodded, and Batman and the Flash began to walk out of the room.

"Keep an eye on them," Batman whispered to Black Canary as he passed her.

Green Arrow stood at the foot of his protégé's bed concern etched into his features when Black Canary came and placed a hand on his shoulder and offering him a small smile to ease him. She finally took in the young girl lying on the bed. She seemed to be at peace at the moment, but how long would that last? She then looked at the teams' serious faces and back to Green Arrow. She sighed inwardly, "M'gann, why don't you come help me make something to eat for everyone. We are going to need to keep our energy up if we are going to be of any help to Artemis."

M'gann, who had been holding one of Artemis's hands, glanced up at her team to see their drained expressions. She nodded once and then reluctantly let go of her best friend's hand, and followed Black Canary out of the room. Robin replaced M'gann's hand with his, and stared at the young archer's face. He was sifting through any and all information he had of drugs in his mind. Hoping something would come up that would help reverse this effect.

The room was silent, except for the beeping from the machines that monitored Artemis's heart rate and brain activity, for what felt like hours, but in reality was only minutes before Wally spoke up, "Damn it, I should have grabbed that syringe, this is all my fault." He felt tears pricking at the corners of his eyes, and squeezed his eyes shut to prevent them from falling. He wouldn't cry. He would be strong, for her.

Kaldur placed a comforting hand on the young speedster's shoulder, "This is no one's fault Wally. Even if you were able to grab that syringe before they injected her, who says they did not have another, or they would not have killed her."

Wally grimaced at the thought of the last thing Kaldur said. He still couldn't help but blame himself for what happened, and he always would. She had already been through so much in her life, and now she was forced to live in a nightmarish world? This wasn't fair; he should be the one on the bed. Out of everyone on the team he had led the cushiest lifestyle. He was the one who had loving parents, a great family that cared about him. He should be the one in the nightmare world, not her, not after everything she has been through already.

"I should've gone after Luthor myself," Robin whispered as he looked into Artemis's face. She seemed peaceful at the moment.

Wally opened his eyes and looked at Robin, "No, she wouldn't have let you."

The boys slightly smiled at the thought of their thickheaded, blonde, team member. The mood slightly lifted, but only for a moment, when a whisper escaped Artemis's lips.

"Dad, please…stop," her voice trembled, causing everyone to look up at her face when they noticed tears falling from her eyes.

"These aren't just nightmares," Green Arrow growled as he placed his hand on her foot, "she's reliving her childhood." This realization caused a collective gasp to escape the teams' lips. Green Arrow turned towards J'onn, his voice dripping with desperation, "Have they found anything out yet?"

J'onn looked grave as he shook his head. Green Arrow cursed under his breath and turned back to the blonde girl. She looked much younger laying there. She looked so scared and fragile, and there was nothing he could do. He was supposed to be her mentor, the one that was supposed to get her away from her awful past. Something like was never supposed to happen to her.

Before the boys could brood anymore Black Canary and M'gann entered the room with sandwiches, chips, and drinks. As they set them down Black Canary looked at the distraught teen boys as she commanded, "You all need to eat at least one sandwich."

"I'm not hungry," Wally muttered under his breath, his eyes never leaving Artemis's face.

"That was not a request Wally," Black Canary crossed her arms in front of her chest and glared at the boy. Wally looked up to the woman and produced a glare of his own, but the heroine just narrowed her eyes even more. Wally stood there in a glaring match with Black Canary for a while before finally giving up. He looked once more at Artemis, who at the moment was peacefully sleeping, before sighing and hesitantly letting go of her hand to walk to grab a sandwich. The other boys followed and began to eat in silence.

Black Canary smiled slightly at the boys, she knew they were concerned for Artemis, everyone was, but they still needed to eat. She walked over to Green Arrow who had taken Robin's place and was now holding Artemis's hand in his.

"You should eat too, Ollie," Black Canary whispered to him.

He nodded before looking at Black Canary, he voice was quiet, dark, "I will, but not until they are done. I don't want her to be alone Dinah, she's not just having nightmares, she's reliving her childhood."

Dinah's eyes widened at his discovery and looked down at the blonde, her eyes full of sadness, she placed a hand on Ollie's shoulder, "I understand."

Dinah walked away from Oliver and walked over to J'onn and asked him to help with something. He nodded and followed her out of the room. They returned shortly with J'onn levitating a couch and some chairs into the room. He placed the seating around Artemis so the team and Oliver could sit while watching the girl.

Wally had quickly eaten four sandwiches and walked back over to Artemis. He moved a chair closer to her so he could sit down while continuing to hold her hand.

"You're going to be okay Artemis; we are going to find a way to wake you up. I promise," he whispered to her. The rest of the team soon finished eating as well, and Robin walked over and stood next to Green Arrow and placed his hand on Artemis's arm before Oliver even noticed he was there. Oliver let go of Artemis's hand and walked over to where Dinah and J'onn were talking quietly. Robin took Oliver's place of holding Artemis's hand and grabbed a chair. Kaldur, Conner, and M'gann all took a seat on the couch placed at the foot of Artemis's bed.

"Have they found anything out?" Oliver asked in a hushed tone as he approached the other two League members.

J'onn shook his head, "Not exactly, they have identified one substance as Scarecrow's fear gas, but Luthor has altered it somehow."

"Damn it, this is taking too long," Oliver cursed and started to head towards the door, only to be stopped by Dinah grabbing his hand.

"Give them time Oliver. Those two are some of the smartest men on the League, if anyone is going to find something out it's them," she said reassuringly. Oliver sighed and nodded, he knew she was right, but waiting sucked.

* * *

Batman and the Flash entered the room where Artemis was being kept to see the team asleep around her. Wally and Robin were both holding one of her hands with their heads resting on her bed, while M'gann was next to Robin her head also resting on the bed and hand resting on Artemis's leg. Conner and Kaldur were both sleeping on the couch at the end of Artemis's bed.

Batman turned to look at Black Canary who just sighed and shrugged her shoulders, "They wouldn't leave her."

He nodded and Flash turned to her, keeping his voice low as to not wake up the exhausted teenagers, "How is her condition?"

"It's getting worse. When she first came she would have an outburst every couple of hours, but now she has at least one episode every hour," Oliver said gravely.

Flash nodded, "Well if you're correct in your assumption about her battling her past, then we need to try to wake her up as soon as possible before permanent psychological damage is done."

"Unfortunately we have not found a way to reverse the effects of the drug," Batman explained.

"But maybe the only way for her to wake up is for her to realize she's only dreaming," Dinah thought out loud.

Oliver looked at her, skepticism covered his face, "And how do you plan to do that?"

"Someone could enter her mind and explain to her that what she is seeing is just nightmares and that she needs to wake up," Black Canary explained.

"My powers allow me to enter other's minds, but it would probably be better for someone she knows to explain it to her. She might believe them," J'onn said.

Batman nodded as he took in all the information he just received. It might be their only chance seeing as they had yet found a reversal drug. He looked up at the League members in the room, "Let's wake them up then, the team has a new mission."

* * *

"So you want us to go inside Artemis's head?" Robin asked, skeptical of what his mentor was saying.

"Yes," Batman stated, "you will most likely see what she is dreaming, so prepare yourselves."

"When you get inside her head you are to find the real Artemis, and make her realize she is just dreaming, and all she needs to do is wake up," Flash explained.

"The real Artemis?" Conner asked, confused.

Black Canary stepped forward, "You will see Artemis everywhere you go because you are in her mind and she is having nightmares involving herself, but somewhere the Artemis we all know is there. She is probably scared out of her mind, so you will have to get her to believe that she is just dreaming. Everything she is seeing isn't actually happening again."

"Again?" M'gann questioned.

"Yes again," Oliver started as he let out a large sigh. "If I am correct, then these nightmares are actually her memories. As you all know now, Sportsmaster is her father and Cheshire is her sister. Well just be ready to see the way an international criminal raises his daughters."

The team nodded, determination written across all their faces.

"Good luck team, bring her back," Batman encouraged as the team surrounded Artemis's bed once more. They all linked hands as M'gann placed one of her hands on Artemis's head.

"Don't worry Artemis, we'll find you," she whispered before concentrating on entering her best friend's mind.


	3. Chapter 3

_Hello my favorite people! The support I have received for this story is amazing! I am so grateful that you guys like it so much!_

_Well we are now entering Artemis's mind, yay! Since they will be in her mind I have decided they are probably going to feel the emotion she feels during each scene. It only makes sense if they feel what she feels and hears what she think, but I also think I'm going to make that a gradual thing. Also, I'm not exactly sure how I'm going to have them help her/find her, so bear with me. :) Enjoy the chapter!_

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003: Tough Exterior

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"Is everyone here?" M'gann asked, mostly to herself as she made sure everyone made it into Artemis's mind. The team looked around to see they were in the corner of a small apartment. They saw a large, blond man towering over a young, small, blonde child. The child looked to be about three years old, and she stood tall, her fists were clenched, and she was slightly shaking.

"How many times do I have to tell you not to run inside?" The man's voice boomed as he raised his large hand above his shoulder and brought it down hard on the small child's face. The team gasped at the sight that just burned into their own memories.

"Tha-that's Artemis," M'gann croaked out, trying to hold back tears, her hands in front of her mouth, blocking out the sob that threatened to come out.

"Too many times, I'm sorry Daddy," the tiny Artemis whispered as she looked into the eyes of her father; a red mark already forming on the child's face.

"Do it again and I swear I'll break your leg, understand?" Lawrence growled. Artemis nodded an mumbled a, yes sir, as Lawrence brushed past her making his way towards the couch. The small girl stood in the same place, trying her best to hold in her tears.

A dark haired girl walked up next to the shaking blonde, and placed her hand on the young blonde's shoulder. She leaned over and whispered in Artemis's ear, "Don't cry, be strong."

Jade walked away as Artemis nodded and returned to playing as before, just without the running. The memory began to fade, leaving the team in a dark room, no windows or doors could be found.

"That was terrible," M'gann stated, her voice slightly shaking. Conner grimaced at the memory he just witnessed and placed a comforting hand on the Martian's shoulder.

"We need to find her," Wally spoke up, finally looking away from where the young archer was just slapped by her father.

M'gann nodded and brought her hands to her temples, trying to locate the _real_ Artemis. She stayed that way for a couple of minutes before letting out a defeated sigh. "I can't pinpoint her; we are in her mind, so she feels like she's everywhere. Because she _is_ everywhere."

"Do not give up M'gann. We will find her, and we will save her from her nightmares," Kaldur spoke confidently. He was sure they would find her. Before anyone could say anything else another memory started to appear around them.

It was dark outside, and they were in a small room. Two beds occupied the room and two lumps could be easily seen. The lump closest to the door was obviously asleep, or at least was a good enough actor to pass for sleeping. The lump furthest from the door was shaking. You could see blonde hair poking out from under the covers that covered the small form's entire body.

"How the hell could you be so damn stupid!" a female voice was heard, a slight accent accompanying it.

A burly laugh was heard next, "Don't get so uptight lover, it wasn't that big of a deal."

"Not a big deal? Lawrence you almost got us caught! Do you want to go to jail because if you do I would be glad to call up the police right fucking now!" the woman yelled in return, it was obvious that she was furious.

"Don't threaten me Paula," Lawrence growled, the laughter disappearing from his voice all together.

"Don't be a dumb ass then, Lawrence," Paula spat back.

_Stop fight, please, stop fighting_, a voice was heard in each of the team member's head. The all look towards M'gann shocked, but she was wearing the same shocked look on her face.

"We can hear her thoughts?" Robin asked.

M'gann's eyes never left the bundle on the bed as she nodded her bed, "I guess so." Before they could discuss the matter further a crash was heard from behind the door.

"You shouldn't piss me off so much, _lover_," Paula's voice was cold as she spoke.

They heard Sportsmaster chuckle slightly, "That was a nice hit, but be prepared for when I return it, with interest."

_Stop! Just stop fighting please!_

Wally clenched his teeth from anger, "What the hell is their problem? They have children; they shouldn't be fighting around them!"

Robin let out a bitter laugh, causing Wally to snap his attention towards the boy wonder. "What else do you expect KF, this is _Sportsmaster_ we're talking about. He doesn't care about anyone but himself." Kid Flash simply balled his hands into fists to stop him from going crazy with anger.

"We need to think of a plan of some sort to find her," Superboy spoke up; he couldn't listen to this much longer. He always thought Superman ignoring him was horrible, but this was worst. He would rather not have a parent, or be ignored, than this.

"I know, but I have no idea on how to find her. We are trapped in her memories, and when they vanish we are stuck a doorless, windowless room!" Wally yelled, exasperated.

"Calm yourself Kid, if we all put our minds together, we are sure to find a way of locating Artemis," Kaldur said calmly as he placed a soothing hand on Wally's shoulder. Wally took a deep breath to help calm him and the nodded. The memory faded and once again they found themselves in a dark, doorless, windowless room.

"So is this her mind when she's not having a memory?" Conner asked.

"Not exactly," M'gann began as she looked around hoping to find something that would help them, "everyone's mind is different, obviously. When someone enters my mind, for example, it's an open space where you can see everything I care about instantly. That's because I have such an open and happy personality. Artemis, however, is a closed off person. She doesn't let people in easily. So this," she gestured to the room they're in, "is just a part of Artemis's mind. You have to figure out a way out of here before you can find the rest of who she is. Just like you have to break past her tough exterior to find out who she really is."

"So how do we do that?" Conner asked plainly.

"I'm not sure," M'gann sighed, defeated.

Robin began to walk the perimeter of the room, taking in every little detail. "There has to be a key of sorts, to get out of here. What makes Artemis tick? How did we break that tough exterior?"

They were all silent, focusing on how they first began to become friends with the emerald archer.

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_Okay I know it's short! But that is because I really wanted to know how you like the way I'm approaching the memories and the whole concept! I would hate to write out everything in this concept and have you guys hate it. Please give me some feedback, and I'll update real soon! Once again I'm sorry for the short chapter! Thanks for reading! Oh and one more thing, just let me know if ya'll think I should up the rating. I have a bad judge on that just because I feel, no matter the rating if a youngster wants to read it they will._


	4. Chapter 4

_I'm __**so**__ sorry for the delay! My laptop charger broke and I had to wait for a new one to get shipped to me because I am far too cheap to go to Walmart and buy one for like $60. I hope you enjoy this chapter, and hopefully they will start coming out quicker than this wait! Also may I just how hard it is to write Aqualad..._

* * *

004: Into the Forest

* * *

"What is this?" the young blonde girl asked as she held a crossbow in front of her.

"It's called a crossbow, baby girl," Lawrence explained as he set up targets on trees in front of her.

"Why did you give it to me?"

"Because," Lawrence smirked as he turned around to look his daughter in the eyes, "it's about time you learn the family business."

"He's training her? She's like four years old!" Wally growled as he watched the scene unfold in front of him.

"Did you expect anything less?" Robin sighed. Wally bit the inside of his cheek trying to calm his anger and returned his focus to the father and daughter in front of him.

"Daddy," Artemis began, her demander showing how nervous she was.

"What is it baby girl?" Lawrence asked, not looking up from the bow he was tightening.

"What if I don't really want to be a part of the family business?" Artemis asked, waiting for her father's reaction.

Sportsmaster stopped what he was doing and looked at the young girl. His eyes narrowed on the girl causing her to stiffen under his gaze. "Well, baby girl what else would you do? You don't really have anything else going for you."

The young girl's shoulders slumped at her father's words. She knew, even at this young age, there wasn't much else that she could do. She was born into a family of criminals; statistics showed that she too would be a criminal. _There is no hope._

The team cringed as they could feel her realization. "There is hope," Megan whispered, tears forming in her eyes again.

"You're right daddy, I don't know what I was thinking. Please teach me how to use this," she declared, gesturing to the crossbow in his hands.

Lawrence smiled and walked over to her and placed his hand on her head, "That's my girl."

The memory faded and the team once again stood in the dark, doorless, windowless room.

"He's training a _child_ to be a murder," Wally spoke in disbelief.

"Focus KF," Robin stated as he turned to face the entire group, "how do we break through the tough exterior?"

"Artemis?" M'gann called out, her voice slightly trembling. "Artemis, it's us, your friends! We are here to help you, but we need you to help us find you!"

"Artemis, let us out of this room so we can find you!" Robin shouted, praying in his mind this would work. Unfortunately, nothing was happening. The walls stayed in place, no doors appeared, nothing.

"Damn it Artemis, come on!" Wally yelled as he punched a nearby wall. "You're stronger than this! You survived your childhood once so you can do it again!"

At first there was nothing once more, and the team let out a collective sigh of defeat, but then the room started to shake. The walls started to crumble around them to reveal thick forest. The team looked around to see nothing but trees for miles and miles.

"Where are we?" Conner asked.

"It looks like the same place Sportsmaster was training her," Robin noted.

"This must be the next layer of Artemis's mind," M'gann thought out loud. "I can feel her a little better now. We are getting closer."

"Good. M'gann, can you tell which way to go in order to find her?" Aqualad asked. M'gann nodded and started to lead the group farther into the forest. As they walked they heard someone shout. The turned their heads to see a new memory appearing.

"Keep your hands up! Guard your head!" Sportsmaster shouted as he swung once again at the young girl before him.

_Keep your hands up, guard your head. Don't show fear. Don't cry, be strong_, Artemis chanted in her head. Her face was contorted into pure determination. _Prove yourself_.

The team heard her chants and felt her determination. "She just wants him to love her," Robin whispered watching as Sportsmaster trained his young daughter.

"Too slow baby girl," Lawrence chuckled as he struck her across the face forcing her to fall to the ground.

Wally let out an audible growl as M'gann placed a hand on his shoulder to calm him.

"Not too bad, but you're nothing compared to your sister," Lawrence stated as he took a drink from his nearby water bottle.

Artemis struggled to get up from the ground. She was covered in dirt, bruises, and scrapes. "I can keep training, I can become better," she said.

Lawrence let a wide grin cross his face as he placed his hand on his daughter's head, "That's my girl. You might not be as good as Jade, but you have a better attitude, that's for damn sure. Okay let's try again."

Artemis nodded as she returned to her crouch position. "Remember to always be aware of your surroundings, those heroes like to have back up ready. If you cut one down, then there will always be one more waiting to get you," he instructed. Artemis nodded as her father circled her. "Never listen to what those heroes say either. They will always tell you there is another way, that they can help you."

_They can help me? There's another way? Is that true? Is there a way for me to not be a part of the Shadows?_ She questioned herself.

"There is no other way," her father's deep voice brought her back to the reality she already knew.

He lunged for her, but she back flipped back. A smirk was present on his face as he swung a lazy right hook for her. She blocked it and aimed her own punch for his head, but he ducked away. Sportsmaster slowly swiped at her feet, giving her plenty of time to jump over the leg and aim a kick of her own for his side, but he easily grabbed her leg and hoisted her up into the air. She let out a small scream at the sudden change in direction.

"Always anticipate the next move," he chuckled as he dropped her to the ground. Artemis twisted her body enough to not land on her head, but her wrist took most of the impact. She grimaced at the pain, but did not vocalize her pain. She knew if she were to do that, then her father would make it ten times worse. "That's enough for today," he declared. "Your mother and I have work to do tonight."

The memory faded and the team was left standing in the large forest.

"He's not only physically abusing her but also emotionally and psychologically," Robin stated.

"Well no shit, Rob!" Wally yelled, walking past the boy wonder further into the forest.

"Wally wait, we need to stay together!" M'gann yelled running after the speedster and grabbing his hand to halt him.

"We're going too slow!" he declared, whipping around to face the rest of his team. "Every time we take a step forward we end up being stopped by her memories! We need to move!"

"Yes, because arguing isn't wasting time either," Robin sneered towards the redhead. Wally growled and walked towards Robin and grabbed the front of his uniform.

"Shut up, boy wonder, before I make you," He hissed.

Robin didn't back down, he fixed a glare on the boy wrinkling his uniform, "Don't act like you're the only one who cares Wally! We all care about Artemis! She's our teammate, our friend, our sister! So stop biting everyone's head off because we are all trying to find her!"

Wally's eyes widened for a brief moment before he sighed and let go of Robin's uniform. "I know dude, I'm sorry. I just…I just can't lose her again," he admited.

"I know man, and you won't. We're gonna save her, you just have to calm down," Robin consoled, placing a hand on his best friend's shoulder. Wally nodded his acknowledgement. The team turned and started to follow M'gann once again as she tried to locate their blonde archer.

"Also KF," Robin started earning the attention of said boy. "I would like this opportunity to remind you how when Artemis first joined the team and I told you, you were going to fall for her. I would also like to take this opportunity to say, I told you so," the youngest of the team cackled.

Wally let out a groan and dropped his head into his hands, "Dude shut up!" The rest of the team laughed at the two's antics, lifting the mood somewhat.

"So M'gann, how many layers does Artemis have in her mind?" Conner asked.

"Well I can't say for sure, but most people have around three layers to their mind," M'gann started. "There is the first layer, as we saw for Artemis it was a blockade. To keep enemies or anyone she doesn't want snooping around her head at bay. It's actually quite impressive that she has any mental blockades because most people, especially at our age, don't know how to protect their mind from mind walkers."

"Her dad probably taught her how to put them up," Robin commented.

"Wait, there is a way to protect your mind?" Wally asked.

Robin looked at him like he was an idiot, "Yes, of course there is. Did the Flash not teach you how to protect your mind?"

Wally shook his head in response. "Anyway," M'gann called the boys attention back to her explanation, "the next level of a normal mind would be fair ground, where people keep their memories and personality. It's where they store anything that makes them, them. However the trained mind can have backup blockades, which would be there to help confuse the intruder. Such as a large forest that looks the same in every direction," she motioned to the wooded area around them. "Sometimes people will have multiple backup blockades, but I feel as though we are getting closer to Artemis, so even if she does have more than one backup mind blockade I think she is letting us find her. Then comes the fair ground level. And the last layer of the mind is where the person feels the safest. The place where we will find her will be in a place she finds the safest. For most people it's their home, but for Artemis," she trailed off at the end.

"It's probably anywhere but there," Robin finished for her as she nodded solemnly.

* * *

_I know it's short, but I wanted to give you guys at least something since it's been so long. Thank you for the support I really appreciate it!_


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